𝕬𝖗𝖘𝖔𝖓𝖎𝖘𝖙𝖘 𝕷𝖚𝖑𝖑𝖆𝖇𝖞 - [𝗞𝗮𝘇 𝗕𝗿𝗲𝗸𝗸𝗲𝗿]

𝐱𝐯. 𝘵𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘧𝘭𝘦𝘴𝘩

𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐅𝐈𝐅𝐓𝐄𝐄𝐍 — tainted flesh

━━━━━━━

 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐒𝐎𝐋𝐀𝐂𝐄 𝐎𝐅 solid ground and beaming sunlight was a welcoming feeling when they had all exited the torn-up train; Aleksa had exited upon shaking legs that felt as though they'd buckle with the slightest of weight. She was sick of it.

 Aleksa Corvina knew who she was; she was a Shadow Summoner, she was a thief, and she was a crow. But she was not weak. Weakness had never been a feeling she welcomed, and it had so scarcely been a part of her life after leaving the Little Palace.

 Her bleak childhood had been filled with fear; from the images of children older, taller and stronger than herself balling their fists and ready to strike, to the names they'd call her when her eyes flashed with something dark. They had ruined her worth as a child, and it had taken years for her to recover.

 They had made her... Empty. A child that had cried so many tears that she couldn't will her eyes to water, a child that had been outcast so very much that she had little idea of how to interact with others.

 Aleksander had taught her everything she needed to know about being human, about being Grisha. From the way she carried herself, to bottling up fear, replacing that feeling by instead dressing oneself up with intimidation. He had taught her to fight, to stand up for herself... but that was not to say he was gentle in his means.

 Memories of raw cuts and lashings on her arms made her shiver, the thoughts of bruises lingering on her flesh when she hadn't performed to his unbeatable standard... But that was all for her safety and out of a place of love. That's what she told herself, and it's what her poor and desperate heart believed.

 From the moment she had slipped from the Little Place under the guise of the shadows, Aleksa had built herself up higher than Aleksander had ever tried. It had always seemed that whilst he was harsh and insistent that she grew and prospered, he had... held back. It felt as though he restrained himself from making her into the person she was now... that she had been kept on a leash.

 Ketterdam was not for the weak-minded or weak-willed. For one to live and thrive under the smog that coated Ketterdams skies, they had to be strong. That was Aleksa. Strong.

 She could fight, she could pinch things from unsuspecting pigeons and she could charm her way out of a locked box. Aleksa had always been a woman who showed others nothing but her dazzling smiles and coy grins; or if one decided to test her, she'd show her teeth and greet them with the skin of her knuckles.

 She had parted from the crows after her boots had touched solid ground. They had all found themselves in a pub made of cobble, a thatched roof to keep the warmth of the fire within. Kaz, Inej and Jesper had beelined for the bar with a craving for something strong to line their stomachs and quell their racing hearts, all the while thinking that Aleksa would follow.